COLCHESTER, Vt. - Sophomore Scarlett Brookes (Rockaway, N.J./Morris Knolls) struck for the only goal in the 67th minute, first-year Chloe Laizer (West Springfield, Mass./West Springfield) maintained the lead with a brilliant 78th-minute save, and the regionally-ranked Saint Michael's College women's soccer team blanked Southern New Hampshire University, 1-0, during Northeast 10 Conference play on Wednesday evening at Duffy Field. The Purple Knights were ninth in this week's United Soccer Coaches East Region poll.
 
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (9-2-1, 2-2-1 NE10), Southern New Hampshire (2-5-1, 1-2-1 NE10)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Brookes, 1 goal
• Laizer, 1 save
• Sophomore Lola Follansbee (Grafton, Mass./Grafton), 1 assist

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Senior Claudia Keith, 2 saves

GAME FACTS

• Saint Michael's improved to 2-0-2 in its last four games with the Penmen, posting a shutout in each contest. The last eight meetings have now featured at least one team getting blanked.
• The Purple and Gold held a 13-4 lead in shots, while the Penmen gained a 5-4 edge in corner kicks.
• The Purple Knights entered the night tied for the East Region lead in victories. After winning 11 games last year, they now have 20 victories in a two-season span for the first time since 2001-02.
• Brookes, who has missed four games this season, has already matched her career high with seven goals in just eight contests. Her three game-winning strikes are one shy of a program record.
• Laizer tied Tara McCuin's '04 program record for wins by a rookie (9) and stands one shy of the overall standard, set by Abigail Lemanski '04 in 2002. Her five shutouts are one short of Ashleigh Adams' '12 rookie record and already place her among the program's career top 10.

THE ACTION

• The Purple Knights nearly broke through during the ninth minute, but sophomore back Julia Palmese's (Berlin, Conn./Berlin) header, her team's best look in a frenzied three-shot corner kick sequence, was headed off of the goal line by a Penmen field player.
• Keith made a pair of standout saves later in the half, rushing out to smother Follansbee's good look in the 33rd minute before tipping away senior Bridget Shaw's (Norwell, Mass./Norwell) attempt in the 40th minute with her fingers.
• In the 67th minute, Follansbee cleared a loose ball following a corner kick to start a counterattack, chipping a pass toward midfield, where Brookes beat a Penman to a 50/50 ball and carried in alone on Keith. She slipped what proved to be the winner just inside the right netting with 66:43 gone.
• In the 78th minute, junior Avary Hall drilled a lefty strike beyond a diving Laizer but rung the left post. First-year Jillian Collins pounced on the rebound and seemingly had an open net, but Laizer recovered quickly to slide across the goal line and kick away the tying bid with her left foot just before the ball crossed. That proved to be the game's final shot.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Next Wednesday vs. University of Maine-Fort Kent, 6 p.m.
• The Bengals were ranked second in the latest United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division I national poll.